Since Center Field’s founding, several alumni have forged exemplary paths to numerous publications, broadcast networks, advertising and marketing agencies and higher degree programs. They deserve a shout-out, a big shout-out, as they are the ones who have helped build Center Field into what it is today.
Marco Schaden ’18
Marco Schaden is currently a Master of Science candidate in Investigative Journalism as a Toni Stabile Fellow at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. After graduating, he is looking to do investigative journalism within sports and labor. He was previously the editor of the Manhasset Press on Long Island for the past two years, receiving awards for feature writing and in-depth series. He was the editor-in-chief and editor-at-large of Center Field, which he co-founded with Professor Leander Schaerlaeckens and Matt Rzodkiewicz. He graduated from Marist College in 2018 where he majored in journalism and minored in political science.
Kristin Dolan ’18
Alongside Marco Schaden and Matt Rzodkiewicz, Kristin helped establish Center Field as the Managing Editor in 2018. After graduating from Marist, she served as the Club Social Operations Coordinator for the National Football League (NFL) before enrolling in law school. In May 2022, Kristin graduated from Villanova University with her Juris Doctor, concentrating in Sports Law, and also received her Certificate in Dispute Resolution from Pepperdine University. Kristin is currently the Legal Manager for Athlete Partnerships at Fanatics Collectibles and previously served as Legal Counsel for Playfly Sports. Connect with Kristin here.
Nick Rudzewick ’18
Nick Rudzewick is a Video Producer at In The Know by Yahoo and he also owns and operates his own video production company, Rudz Media. Nick has been lucky to have some great success early in his career, highlighted by winning a People’s Voice Webby Award in 2020 and four different Telly awards over the years.
As the Multimedia Director in the early stages of Center Field, Nick assigned photographers and videographers to games and events that required them. He also photographed a lot himself, but his favorite achievement with Center Field was being able to release a 24-minute-long documentary on Marist Hockey. Nick learned more about storytelling and filmmaking by creating that piece than anything else. The best advice Nick gives to anyone looking to enter the media world is to just start telling stories with your work, and then never stop.
Matt Rzodkiewicz ’19
Matt is a Segment Producer at MLB Network, where he has now spent six years working in their Edit department. He oversees the daily video production on television shows such as MLB Tonight and is responsible for countless video edits across all television, streaming, and social media platforms. Matt has won 2 Emmy Awards for his work on MLB Tonight and continues to strive to produce the best content he can to help give back to the game that has given him so much.
Matt took over as Editor-in-Chief in Fall 2018, after Center Field’s debut season in Spring 2018 under Marco Schaden. He is really proud of the work they did in setting a precedent for the journalistic integrity of the outlet and expanding our reach across multiple mediums and social platforms. It truly was a full-time job — one that you get out what you put in, and one that, upon seeing the work of today’s students, continues to pay off. Connect with Matt here.
Meaghan Roche ’19
A wise man once said, “Every good story begins in Poughkeepsie, NY” — that’s where Meaghan found her love for all things editorial, as well as some lifelong friendships. After leaving her second home — the Center for Sports Communication — for the last time after graduation, Meaghan sought out sports editor positions and ultimately landed at NBC Sports with the perfect first job for her. Now in her current role as Search Engine Optimization Manager for The New York Post, Meaghan gets to apply her nerdy brain and love of New York and national sports, features, news, and more while trying to craft perfect headlines and optimized copy (has she mentioned that she is a perfectionist?). In the future, Meaghan hopes to take on positions that give her a similar feeling of community and opportunity that she enjoyed most about Center Field, and maybe one day come full circle and return to the title of ‘Editor in Chief.’ Stay tuned!
Will Bjarnar ’20
Will Bjarnar currently works as a researcher for NBC Sports’ Peacock show, Brother From Another, as well as a freelance researcher for NBC Sports in a broader sense. At the moment, most of his research is focused on the NFL, but he also works on the network’s Olympic coverage — he worked in Stamford during the Tokyo Olympics, and will return back for the Beijing Winter Games in February. In addition, Will is a writer for CelticsBlog, Clips Nation, and The Knicks Wall, obviously focusing on those NBA teams as well as the NBA at large. In the future, he hopes to take the knowledge he began applying at Center Field to a print or online (or both!) magazine and work as a sports, culture, or general features writer. Really, he just loves written journalism and hopes to apply it in any number of ways down the line for any number of outlets. You name it, he’s probably dreamt up a scenario.
Lily currently works at MLB Network as a Broadcast Associate, producing video content. After developing a passion for written and visual storytelling during her time at Center Field, she brings her signature high energy and creative ideas to MLB Network. Still always writing, she hopes to incorporate that aspect of her work into her career more, hoping to one day host her own show while continuing to cover the biggest moments and discussions in sports. The passion and energy she brings to both her current career and crazy dreams wouldn’t be near what it is without her time at Center Field: chasing stories, churning out wild ideas with incredibly talented people, and learning the value of surrounding yourself with people who support and supplement your ambition, but know when to not take it all so seriously. Whatever is exactly next no one on earth knows, but in the chaos of the industry and the world, she never forgets one of the most important lessons from Center Field: don’t fret; write more.
Dan Statile ’20
Dan currently works as an Account Executive at Grey – an advertising agency in Manhattan. In the future, he plans to go back to school and work in the field of clean energy, sustainability, and environmental policy.
Joining Center Field remains one of the best decisions Dan has ever made. He urges you to try anything and everything that you can. Dan was a soccer writer and did social media, but some of his favorite moments were the random projects on-camera work he got to do (something he says he has no skill or appetite for, but when else do you get to try these things!)
Dan also urges you to build as many relationships as you can; with your CF peers, players and coaches of teams you cover, folks from Athletics, administrators and faculty, everyone. Have meaningful conversations with as many people as you can, and get to know them. It will make your work at CF better, and it will make your college experience better altogether.
Amelia Nick ’20
Amelia moved back to her hometown of Dover, VT, in March of 2020 and began working for her local newspaper, The Deerfield Valley News, in May of that year. In October, she got a shot as a reporter at the paper after an op-ed she had written was published. She has since become the beat writer for two local municipal boards. She also covers the occasional breaking news story and has done some investigative reporting work.
Amelia joined Center Field during her junior year as a way to better understand journalists in order to work with them as a public relations professional, her area of study. She eventually went on to become an assistant editor of Center Field during her senior year. Now, she has ambitions to continue down the path of journalism and turn it into a full-time career.
While at Marist, Amelia was a member and eventually captain of the club ski team. Now returning to those roots, in January of 2022, she moved on from her ad sales position at the paper and began running a ski school program at The Hermitage Members Club at Haystack Mountain. She continues to write stories for The Deerfield Valley News each week.
Jess King ’20
Jess is currently a Digital Services Representative at NBC Universal – Sports Group. She is responsible for tracking/monitoring NBC Sports digital advertising campaigns for the LA offices. Unfortunately, Jess hasn’t had the pleasure of going out to LA because of the pandemic, but any clients out of that region she deals with on a regular basis. She has enjoyed the job thus far!
While Jess doesn’t currently work in the journalism industry, she has found great pleasure in the backend sales of live sporting events. She believes her time as a writer and managing editor of Center Field has prepared her for this job in terms of her client-facing attitude and the ability to write a killer email. Ideally, Jess would like to explore this avenue greater and hope to become an Account Executive. She believes with the talents she has learned from this job already, and the way the paper caused her to act as an adult journalist while still being a college student will allow her to climb the latter a bit faster. Maybe she will find herself back in journalism down the line, who really knows. Due to the nature of the new norm we are living in, Jess finds it best to approach life with the “where the wind takes me” attitude. She was blessed to get this job after graduation during a hiring freeze and Jess will continue to ride this train—at least until it’s time to get on another one.
Mike Cahill ’20
Mike Cahill graduated from Marist in spring of 2020. He was a writer and photographer for Center Field during his senior year. His first professional opportunities were freelancing photography for the US Soccer Federation and writing for Fansided blogs. In fall of 2023, Mike became the lead photographer for Big State Sports, a media company that covers high school sports in northern New Jersey. Mike got called up to the Big Leagues in spring of 2024, joining Major League Baseball as a Player Social Coordinator distributing content to players. In 2025, he started a new role at MLB with the Editorial Social team covering baseball on all of MLB’s social platforms. Connect with Mike here.
Dave Connelly ’21
Dave currently works as a video editor, quality assurance analyst, and staff writer at SportsGrid, a streaming network that provides 24/7 programming and content surrounding the sports betting industry. He also contributes some freelance work at Unabated Sports, a company that helps bettors leverage their tools and resources to make smarter betting decisions.
The lessons that Dave learned during his time at Center Field as the editor-in-chief and men’s basketball beat writer helped prepare him for life after college and gave him a head start in experience against the rest of the industry. Connect with Dave here.
Nick Stanziale ’21
Nick is currently the director of marketing at Topinka Financial in Wayne, New Jersey. At Topinka Financial. His job is to help the development of the marketing department, overseeing all social media tasks and promoting the business through the use of social media on mainly Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Nick also engages with clients to keep them up to date about the practice’s events and schedules.
Although this wasn’t the expectation following his time at Marist, he is thoroughly happy with how things have gone so far. In the future, Nick still hopes to break into the sports media industry and become a writer, reporter, or broadcaster. This has been the goal since day one and he hopes to one day accomplish that feat. Nick learned a lot during his short three years at Center Field, but the most valuable lesson he learned was to step out of his comfort zone. In order to be successful in this type of business you have to establish a relationship with those around you, but also understand you have a job to accomplish. Nick is forever grateful for the great writers and editors that were around him during his years writing for the club. They all taught him so many valuable lessons and techniques that Nick still uses today.
Kristin Flanigan ’21
Kristin Flanigan graduated from Marist in the spring of 2021 and she is currently working as an Art Supervisor for DDB Health New York. In this role, Kristin works with a variety of clients on both US and global accounts tackling campaign ideation, brand development, print and digital design. Her day to day involves creative thinking and coming up with innovative design solutions. In the future, Kristin hopes to continue her career in Art Direction, one day as a Creative Director. She joined Center Field in her sophomore year at Marist and loved every minute of it until graduation. During her three years at the publication, Kristin had the freedom to grow as a creative and she got to learn and strengthen her graphic design skills. She is grateful for the experience, as the skills Kristin practiced then are now applied to her work daily. Connect with Kristin here.
Sabrina Molinaro ’21
After being a part of Center Field for three years, Sabrina graduated from Marist in May of 2021. Since then, she has moved to Boston where she spent some time in the renewable energy recruiting industry. She is currently working as a Marketing and Administrative Coordinator at Boston University’s School of Law. While Sabrina never had much of an eye for sports, she greatly enjoyed her time editing videos for Center Field not only for the work she did but for the people she met. She has carried her love of video editing with her out of college and is hoping to be able to incorporate it more into both her professional and personal life.
Ryan Loeffler ’21
Ryan is a former staff writer for Center Field. After graduating from Marist in 2021, he went on to continue his education at Sacred Heart University, where he earned his Master’s in Sports Broadcasting in 2023.
He held positions in the Athletic Department at the United States Military Academy and for the New York Yankees after earning his Master’s, and is now going into his second year as the Assistant Athletic Director for Broadcast & Video Production at the University of Maine. There, he produces and directs all of their Division I athletic broadcasts across various streaming platforms.
He wouldn’t be where he is today without Center Field. It taught him that there was more to sports than just the athletes themselves and opened his eyes to where he could see himself thrive in the world of sports media. Connect with Ryan here.
Sam DiGiovanni ’22
After working as a writer and editor for CenterField and graduating from Marist in May of 2022, Sam worked at ClutchPoints as an associate editor and 76ers beat reporter. He covered the Sixers as a credentialed reporter for 3 seasons and also spent the 2023 MLB season covering the Phillies for Philly Sports Network. Now, Sam works as a fitness coach at Body20 and an assistant coach for the Pennridge High School girls basketball team. Connect with Sam here.
Mackenzie Meaney ’22
Mackenzie was the managing editor at CF! Since graduating from Marist, she got her MSJ from Northwestern University and has worked as a breaking news reporter at Deadspin before it got sold. Mackenzie was a sports media fellow at Business Insider, covering topics like gambling, streaming, NIL and other business and sports intersections. Now she works for The Associated Press as a newsperson. Her job is to basically write game recaps. With main focuses on MLB, WNBA, MLS and college sports, primarily football. Connect with Mackenzie here.
Bridget Reilly ’22
Bridget graduated in the class of 2022 and is currently a Sports Reporter/Producer at the New York Post. She has been with The Post since January 2023 and prior to taking the position, she was a freelancer and intern with The Philadelphia Inquirer in the sports department. Bridget was previously the Editor-in-Chief at Center Field during her senior year. Connect with Bridget here.
Jonathan Kinane ’23
Jonathan looks back at his time with Center Field as some of his best and proudest memories at Marist. The lessons learned from three years serving in leadership roles along with a year of graduate school at Syracuse University helped him land a job as a producer at NewsChannel 9 in his hometown of Syracuse, NY where he particularly enjoys getting to help cover local sports. Jonathan is grateful to all the past staff writers and editors who helped make Center Field into what it is now — and those in the present and future whose innovative ideas will help our little club continue to grow. Connect with Jonathan here.
A late bloomer, Andrew got involved with Center Field during his junior year and was ambitious in his involvement with the team. He went from writing feature stories and some select gamers his first year to Football Beat Writer and Managing Editor his senior year.
Andrew is currently one of what feels like a million Marist alumni working for MLB Network and is an aspiring video editor and content creator. He also co-hosts the Stoppage Time Stooges podcast with fellow Center Field alums Ricardo Martinez-Paz, Christian De Block and Jacob Aframian. The relationships and leadership skills learned during his Center Field years have been invaluable to his career, and he couldn’t have been more grateful to have played a small part in its developing story. Connect with Andrew here.
Jacob Aframian ’23
Since graduating Jacob has worked for multiple publications. For nearly 2 years he have worked for a local newspaper in Cold Spring called The Highlands Current where he cover Haldane Central High School sports. Back in October Jacob started working for SportsGrid as a content creator and then transitioned into editing videos for YouTube. Jacob has recently started job at the NBA as a production trainee. Connect with Jacob here.
Luke Sassa ’25
Luke Sassa is a content coordinator at SNY, where he manages content logistics to support gameday coverage of New York sports teams, including the Mets, Yankees, Giants, Jets, Knicks, Liberty, and more. Luke works with various content departments and talent in his role, including SportsNite, digital, social, and field producers, to ensure SNY’s content operations go off without a hitch. When he’s not at SNY, Luke can be found writing public policy briefs in his role as planning chief of the grassroots organizing group Project 2029. Luke’s roles with Center Field provided him ample preparation for these post-grad roles. Logistical and organizational skills developed through time spent as Center Field’s managing editor have directly translated to his role as a content coordinator. Similarly, the leadership skills Luke nurtured while running Center Field meetings as editor-in-chief have proven essential in helping him run daily content meetings with coworkers from various departments. He has also carried his love of writing and editing into his new role as a policy wonk, applying various editorial skills to develop detailed policy roadmaps aimed at making our world a better place. Connect with Luke here.
Jimmy was an assistant editor for Center Field and served as the beat reporter for the women’s lacrosse team during the spring of his junior year. He was also the producer and director of Red Fox Report. After graduating from marist in January 2025 Jimmy started working in the Wraps department at ESPN. As a Production Assistants in Wraps he is expected to create highlights of
games that air during halftime to give viewers updates on games across the country. In addition, he produces pregame, halftime, postgame and in-game updates across ESPN’s networks. Wraps mainly focuses on college sports like football, basketball, lacrosse, baseball, and softball, with college football and basketball being the main priority. Jimmy also helps with coverage for other sports like MLB, the WNBA, and NBA Summer League when needed. Connect with Jimmy here.